From Nederland riders go along Peak to Peak Highway and down South St. Vrain to Lyons

From Lyons riders return to Boulder along U.S. 36, Lefthand Canyon and Lee Hill Drive.

Enter Boulder via Lee Hill Drive between 2:20 p.m. and 3:40 p.m.

Right on Broadway

Left on Spruce Street

Right on 17th Street, passing through downtown for the second time.

Right on Arapahoe Avenue

Left on Broadway Right on Pennsylvania Avenue, then quickly left on 13th Street

Right on Baseline Road between 2:32 p.m. and 3:57 p.m.

Continue to Flagstaff Road.

Right on Flagstaff Summit Road.

Finish at Sunrise Amphitheater between 2:41 p.m. and 4:09 p.m.

All times are approximate. Actual times may vary. Expect rolling closures along the race route.

Source: City of Boulder

Extended road closures

Baseline Road at Broadway and at Sixth Street

Flagstaff Road at Sixth Street

17th Street from Canyon to Spruce

Spruce Street from 17th to Broadway

Pearl Street from 15th Street to 20th Street

Access to Flagstaff Mountain open space and to Flagstaff Road will close at 5 p.m. Aug. 24, the evening before the race.

Access to Flagstaff Mountain on race day will by bike or foot only. All trails except View Point Trail will be closed.

Cycling enthusiasts can start plotting the best vantage points from which to catch the USA Pro Cycling Challenge during its Boulder stage.

Boulder released detailed race information -- including the exact path the elite racers will take through downtown Boulder and University Hill and the approximate times when riders will pass through each section of the 103-mile route -- last week in preparation for a meeting Tuesday to discuss race planning.

The public hearing at the City Council's regular meeting will provide an opportunity for the public to express any concerns about -- as well as support for -- the race, which will pass through Boulder twice on Aug. 25, the sixth day of the seven-day race.

The meeting also will include discussion of potential legal issues around the race. The City Attorney's Office has recommended the City Council adopt an emergency ordinance giving the city manager the authority to issue permits, waive fees and make rules for safety.

Some activists have argued that the race should not end at Sunrise Amphitheater on Flagstaff Mountain's summit, as planned, because of restrictions on competitive events on open space. The city attorney has said nothing in the code or charter will interfere with the race.

The memo on race preparations includes detailed maps of the race route, which will leave from Golden a little after 11 a.m. and enter Boulder from Colo. 93 before taking a loop through downtown. The race will take Arapahoe Avenue to Folsom Street to Canyon Boulevard to 17th Street to Spruce Street to Ninth Street.

The riders are expected to still be fairly close together at that point in the race.

From there, the cyclists will head up Boulder Canyon to Nederland, along the Peak to Peak Highway and down South St. Vrain to Lyons, and then back toward Boulder along U.S. 36, with a scenic detour up Lefthand Canyon and down Lee Hill Drive.

The cyclists -- now much more spread out -- are expected to reenter Boulder from Lee Hill Drive and take Broadway back to downtown.

After another loop through downtown, the riders will head through University Hill on 13th Street to Baseline Road. From there, they'll push up Flagstaff Mountain, for what is expected to be a dramatic finish at the Sunrise Amphitheater. The fastest cyclists are expected to reach the finish around 2:40 p.m.

A Finish Festival will be held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. along Pearl Street, which will be closed from 15th to 20th streets starting at 6 a.m. Aug. 24 until 8 p.m. Aug. 25.

The Finish Festival will include two large JumboTron screens, which will show the entire race, entertainment stages, and beer tents on each block.

Most of the traffic control for the race will involve rolling closures, but there will be several longer closures.

In addition to the Pearl Street closure, Baseline Road will be closed at Sixth Street starting at 5 p.m. Aug. 24 to everyone except residents and emergency vehicles.

Baseline will be closed west of Broadway to all non-local traffic starting at 8 a.m. on the race day to discourage out-of-town visitors from trying to drive to Flagstaff Road.

Downtown, 17th Street will be closed from Canyon to Spruce, and Spruce Street will be closed from 17th to Broadway starting at 9 a.m. on the race day. Parking restrictions also will be in place.

Because of the road closures and expected traffic in the area, police, firefighters and paramedics will stage crews and emergency vehicles around the festival area so that they can respond quickly to any issues, the city memo said.

City crews also will be on high alert for possible wildfires, the memo said. Open space rangers will work extra shifts in the Flagstaff area in the days leading up to the race, with a focus on fire prevention.

Several fire crews will be stationed on Flagstaff during the race, and a wildfire spotter crew will be in an airplane overhead.

Most open space trails on Flagstaff Mountain will be closed during the race to limit the impact on natural resources. The exception will be View Point Trail. People can walk or bike up Flagstaff Road or walk up View Point Trail to watch the race. There will be several bike corrals on Flagstaff. The open space department has leased 125 portable toilets and numerous trash and recycling bins for the event.

Parts of Flagstaff Trail will be open after the race for people leaving the area.

City officials have said they don't know how many spectators will come to Boulder for the race. They believe they can safely accommodate between 30,000 and 40,000 people on Flagstaff and between 50,000 and 60,000 at the Finish Festival. They expect 100,000 people or more to watch the race from some point along the route.

To get a better sense of the crowd dynamics at large road races, a group of city staffers attended stages of the Tour of California last month.

"Staff reported their observations and experience that crowds at these types of events are dynamic, that they distribute themselves in ways that provide for optimal viewing experiences, and that their distribution for optimal viewing limits the likelihood that they will create or be subject to safety problems," the memo said.

The necessary permits to hold the various race activities normally would cost around $10,000, the memo said, but city staffers are recommending that the city waive the permit fees.

All the preparations to host the race will cost the city a little more than $224,000, the memo said, but city officials expect to see a boost in sales tax revenue that will cover the cost.

The memo estimated that if 150,000 people come to Boulder for the race, that would have an economic impact of around $12.1 million and generate $352,935 in sales tax revenue.

The local organizing committee is also offering commemorative wristbands in return for a donation and a promise to follow a code of conduct on Flagstaff. Proceeds from the wristbands will go to the city to offset the cost of hosting the race.

New coordinator pushes Buffs to work, play at level he expectsJim Leavitt has discovered this much about his new defense at Colorado: He has some talent with which to work, but his players need to put it in another gear. Full Story